Our third stop on the Great North London Brewery Crawl was the brewery which started it all. Our roller derby training venue is down the road in Seven Sisters, and when we first realised that we had been neglecting the London craft brewery scene, we intended to start with the brewery which we had heard existed in Tottenham Hale. This germ of an idea grew into the Great North London Brewery Crawl, but it was all built around Beavertown. In honour of this, and due to the cheap prices, we drank a lot of beers there.

L-R: Moose Fang, Imperial Lord Smog Almighty, Neck OilThe Beers

Test Pilot Mavericus

J: Light, quite fruity, and not too hoppy. There’s not too much aftertaste, a little bitterness builds after a while, but I could still easily drink a few pints. 9/10

K: I could definitely drink a pint or four. 8/10

Test Pilot Anser

J: A lot more hoppy and bitter than the other Test Pilot, not getting a good impression from the very first taste. It’s relatively light, but I’m glad we don’t have to drink too much of it. 3/10

K: Almost like treacle. You can really taste the alcohol. 3/10

Neck Oil

J: Lighter than the usual IPA, but still with a decent flavour and very easy to drink. The bitterness bleeds in after a few drinks but doesn’t spoil the experience. It’s not too exciting though compared to the Test Pilot Mavericus. 6/10

K: Best all day. 9/10

Imperial Lord Smog Almighty

J: This is what a real stout tastes like. Strong and very smoky, a lot heavier than the hybrids we were drinking earlier. I can taste the alcohol more with every sip too, which isn’t a good think. The best thing I can say about it is that it’s worthy of its name. 2/10

K: I can barely drink a sip. Help! 2/10

Moose Fang

J: Quite syrupy with notes of chocolate and caramel, a lot easier to drink than the stout but really alcoholic and becomes too sweet after a while. A half would probably finish me. 4/10

K: Not as good as the fusions we tried in Camden Town and BrewDog but passable. 5/10

Blubus Maximus (Beavertown and Wild Beer Co)

(This was the wild card, bought for us by a group of Midlands lads sharing our table who were interested in our project and told us we needed to try something a bit different. It was certainly that.)

J: Sour and fruity and extremely fizzy. It doesn’t taste like I’m drinking beer at all. I could drink quite a lot of it for the flavour but the carbonation is a bit excessive and is putting me off. 7/10

I don’t have any notes from Kamala on this beer, but given her usual opinion on sours I’m going to suggest she didn’t enjoy this one. I seem to remember her pulling a face and refusing a second glass.

The Ambience

J: Outside was a little cold but would be lovely in the summer. Inside it looked cosy, and packed. It’s also nice to be surrounded by the brewing equipment in the place where the beer is created. The bar staff were less helpful with recommendations, probably because they were so busy, but they were quick and efficient and the beer was cheap. They ought to add more women’s toilets though. 7/10

K: They played good music (e.g. The Corrs), but they should add more tables inside and introduce beer flights for tasting. 7/10